State Senate Overview:

There were 13 incumbents who ran in the November 2 general election. Four incumbents lost, and thus 9 incumbents were re-elected to the Wisconsin State Senate.

There will be 8 new senators sworn-in, 2 Democratic candidates and 6 Republicans.

Of the 17 seats up for election, 6 were won by Democrats and 11 by Republicans.

2 candidates were unopposed, both Republicans.

0 candidates ran as an independent or third party candidate in the general election.

Incumbency Analysis

Of the 1,167 state senate seats up for election in 2010, incumbents ran for 894 (76.6%) of them. Of these 894, 94 lost their re-election bids, 89 Democrats and 5 Republicans. In Wisconsin, 4 incumbent senators did not run for re-election on the November 2 ballot, while 13 incumbents (76.5%) ran for re-election. Of the 13 who ran, 4 were defeated (all Democratic incumbents).

New State Senators and General Election Winners

388 new senators were elected across the country. This includes challengers who defeated incumbents as well as candidates who won open seats. Of these 388, 278 were Republicans and 110 were Democrats. In Wisconsin, 8 new senators will be sworn-in, 2 Democratic candidates and 6 Republicans. In total, Wisconsin elected 17 senators, 11 Republicans and 6 Democrats.

Competitiveness

Michael Ellis was one of 2 unopposed Republican senate candidates in 2010. He was first elected in 1998.

Across the nation, 1,167 state senate seats were up for election in 2010. 1,143 of those seats were partisan seats (24 seats were up for election in Nebraska's nonpartisan unicameral legislature). In 320 (28.0%) of these state senate contests, there was a major party candidate with no major party opposition. In Wisconsin, 2 candidates (11.8% of seats) faced no major party opposition. Of these 2, both were Republicans.

State Assembly Overview:

There were 79 incumbents who ran in the November 2 general election. Only 10 incumbents lost, and thus 69 incumbents were re-elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly.

No Republican incumbents lost in the general election, while 10 incumbent Democratic incumbent lost.

There will be 29 new representatives sworn-in, 5 Democrats and 24 Republicans.

Of the 99 seats up for election, 38 were won by Democrats, 60 by Republicans and 1 Independent.

31 candidates were unopposed, 14 Democrats and 17 Republicans.

20 candidates ran as an independent or third party candidate in the general election.

Incumbency Analysis

Of the 4,958 state house seats up for election, incumbents ran in the general election for 4,091 (79.5%) of them. Of these 4,091 incumbents, 413 lost their re-election bids, 403 Democrats and 10 Republicans. In Wisconsin, 79 (79.8%) incumbents ran for re-election. Of these 79, 10 incumbent representatives were defeated. All 10 incumbents were Democrats.

Incumbents who ran on November 2

The following is a list of all of the incumbents who ran on the November 2 general election ballot:

New Representatives and General Election Winners

1,345 new representatives were elected across the country. This includes challengers who defeated incumbents as well as candidates who won open seats. Of these 1,345, 988 were Republicans and 357 were Democrats. In Wisconsin, 30 new representatives will be sworn-in, 5 Democrats and 26 Republicans. In the 19 open seat contests, Republicans won 15 while Democrats won 5. In total, Wisconsin elected 99 representatives, 60 Republicans and 38 Democrats and 1 Independent.

Other

Competitiveness

Mark Pocan was first elected to the assembly in 1998. He was one of 14 unopposed Democratic candidates in the 2010 general election.

Across the nation, 4,958 state house seats were up for election in 2010. In 1,680 (33.9%) of these state house contests, there was a major party candidate with no major party opposition. In Wisconsin, 31 candidates (31.3% of all seats) faced no major party opposition. Of these 31, 14 were Democrats and 17 were Republicans.

National Partisan Trends

The following tables detail the partisan breakdown of national election results. These results provide context for Republican gains in Wisconsin.

Incumbents who were defeated in the general election

Across the nation, only 15 Republican incumbents were defeated while 492 Democratic incumbents were defeated. In total, 507 (10.4%) of the 4,872 incumbents running in the general election were defeated. The following is a breakdown of incumbent defeats in the 2010 general election:

The following is the breakdown of incumbents who lost.

Incumbents defeated in 2010 legislative elections

Party

Senate

House

Total

Democratic

89

403

492

Republican

5

10

15

TOTALS

94

413

507

Total new legislators elected

In total, 1,733 (28.3%) new legislators were elected in 2010. Of these 1,733, 1,266 (73.1%) are Republicans and 467 (26.9%) are Democrats.

The following is the breakdown of new legislators.

New Legislators after the 2010 legislative elections

Party

Senate

House

Total

Democratic

110

357

467

Republican

278

988

1,266

TOTALS

388

1,345

1,733

Winners of Open Seats

Open seats contests made up 1,178 (19.2%) of the 6,125 seats on November 2. Of these 1,178 open seats, Republicans won 729 (61.9%) while Democrats won 449 (38.1%). Going into the election, the number of open seats formerly held by each party was quite similar. Estimates prior to the election suggest that approximately 52% of the open seats were previously held by Republicans and 48% were held by Democrats.

The following is the breakdown of open seat winners.

Open Seat Winners in 2010 legislative elections

Party

Senate

House

Total

Democratic

108

341

449

Republican

191

538

729

TOTALS

299

879

1,178

Impact on legislative majorities

Heading into the November 2 elections, the Democratic Party held a commanding lead in state houses in the 88 legislative chambers that held elections in 2010. 52 of the 88 chambers, or nearly 60% of them, had a Democratic majority, while only 33 of them had a Republican majority. (Two chambers had an exactly equal number of Democrats and Republicans and one is officially nonpartisan.) The following is a partisan breakdown of state legislatures prior to the November 2 election:

As a result of the election, Republicans picked up 20 legislative chambers while Democrats lost 20. Republicans won 53 total chambers on November 2, while Democrats won only 32. The following is a partisan breakdown of state legislatures after the November 2 election:

Another way to examine the data is to gauge how many chambers had gains for the Democratic Party versus the Republican Party. Using this variable, the wide-sweeping Republican victory is further amplified. Democrats bolstered their majorities in only 7 of 88 (7.96%) state chambers. These legislatures are as follows:

In 7 chambers, the GOP kept their current number of seats. In one chamber, the California State Assembly, both major parties gained seats by filling 2 vacancies and defeating an incumbent independent. Overall, the Republican Party picked up legislative seats in 75 (85.2%) of the 88 legislative chambers that held elections on November 2.

Impact on State Politics

Along with the GOP capture of the U.S. House of Representatives, state Republicans gained trifectas (control of the governorship, house, and senate) in 12 states. The following is a breakdown of trifectas across the nation, before and after the 2010 election:

Trifectas before and after the 2010 Election

Party

Before election

U.S. House seats

After election

U.S. House seats

Gain/loss states

Gain/loss congressional seats

Democratic

16

131

11

115

-5

-16

Republican

8

66

20

198

+12

+132

Before the election, 131 U.S House seats were in states with Democratic trifectas, while 66 districts were in states with Republican trifectas. After the election, Republicans trifectas control redistricting for 198 U.S. House seats while Democrats control only 115. Additionally, California, the strongest Democratic trifecta with 53 U.S. House representatives, passed propositions that take redistricting power away from state government.